The Curse Of The Time Traveler
by racheljeanne
Summary: *Highly based off of the plot The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, and the film by the same name directed by Robert Schwentke* What would you do if the love of your life has a spectacular ability that pulls them through time and space without warning, leaving you to hope that they'll return. This is the story of Marley Rose, an ordinary girl with an extraordinary life.
1. Chapter 1

The day had started out just like any other for Marley. Boring classes, dull lectures, and strong coffee filled most of the afternoon before she was finally released for the extended weekend. She happily sipped on her hot drink as she walked down the sidewalks of Lima, hoping to get back to her apartment before dusk. The air felt warm and breezy, just the way she liked it. It was the type of weather that allowed her to wear her favorite loose tops that fit her thin frame perfectly. It also told everyone that summer was drawing closer and closer, which many of the students at Lima University were more than thrilled about.

She dodged a few people who rushed by her, seemingly in a huge enough hurry to their destination that they couldn't look up from their phones or newspapers. Only another 15 minutes and she would be alone to enjoy her weekend alone and in peace. She finished her coffee just as she decided what movies she was going to watch in order to keep her entertained during another long break from the stress of college.

Marley walked into a local diner that she never had the time to try in order to throw her now empty Starbucks cup away. She didn't pay much attention to anyone, keeping her eyes shyly toward the ground and avoiding the curious looks of the people who were seated? Her eyes darted up for a short second to make sure she wasn't going to run into anyone on her way out. But in a corner booth of the small restaurant sat a tall man with a shirt that she could have sworn she had seen before. Could it be? "Probably not," She told herself as she stuffed her hands in her pockets, "Just a random guy that looks like him. It couldn't be."

Marley was extremely curious by nature, and that wonder started to build inside of her as she headed toward the door. She froze with her hand on the handle, stopping herself from pushing it open and leaving. She looked over at him again, catching a small glimpse of his profile before suddenly swallowing her pride and taking a few steps toward his direction. She had a slight feeling of assurance that it was him, but she'd been wrong so many times before. It had caused so much embarrassment and disappointment for her, but her curiosity got the best of her every single time. This moment was no exception.

"Excuse me," She said quietly after lightly clearing her throat as she stood awkwardly at the side of his table. She caught full view of his face now, and her stomach dropped. He looked exactly the same as the last time she saw him. Even the worry lines on his forehead were in the same place that they were when she was younger. It really was him, he was really here. Marley exhaled and smiled happily at him, "Finn," she murmured, "Y-You're really here." She sat down across from him, taking her hands out of her pockets and folding them on top of the table. "I can't..believe you're actually here, in front of me! It's been years since I've seen you, even though it's probably been different for you." She bit the inside of her cheek nervously while darting her eyes around the room. "You told me not to freak out, but I…can't help it!"

Marley didn't notice that as she rambled on the man's face was contorted with confusion and slight fear. He cautiously leaned forward as if to whisper something to her, Marley automatically getting closer also. "Are you okay, Miss?" Finn said slowly, sounding almost concerned for her sanity Marley couldn't help but furrow her brow at his question. She knew that Finn had a few nicknames for her, but calling her 'miss' was a brand new experience.

"Am…I okay?" She repeated the question back to him, hoping that saying it out loud would give her insight as to what he meant. She exhaled sharply, an anxious smile spreading across her face. "Of course I'm okay, I'm more than okay." She said as she leaned back a little bit, trying to figure out what angle he was working at. "W-why did you call me miss, Finn?" She asked, blinking her eyes and shaking her head in confusion. She looked around to a few people glancing their eyes in their direction, trying to seem preoccupied with their food or coffee. She would have figured that he would've been just as ecstatic as her when she approached him, but he seemed the opposite. His eyes seemed tired and stressed, and the stern line of his lips made him seem very grumpy that she was sitting there talking to him. He brought the coffee cup to his mouth, raising his eye brows as he thought about what to say to her.

"I don't know how you know my name," He said to her in a low harsh whisper, "but you must have the wrong person." He seemed very agitated now, nothing like the man that she knew since she was a child. Finn was always kind and sweet to her, giving them a special relationship that was unique to the two of them. Marley knew every secret of his, and he knew every secret of hers. The two of them were best friends, despite the years spent apart.

At least that was what she thought; she couldn't believe that he sat there across from her acting as if he'd never seen her in his life. That was when a realization struck Marley, making her let out a sigh of mixed emotions. "You don't recognize me." She said flatly, slumping back in the booth seat and running a hand through her long brown hair. He shook his head at her, giving her a forced and awkward smirk. All eagerness that was there a few moments ago was completely gone, leaving her disappointed and unsure of what to do next, but not surprised.

Finn was a time traveler, he was pushed and pulled through different decades without warning and was forced to stay there until he was forced again to travel. She wasn't sure how it worked, and doubted that anybody would ever figure out what his condition was. Marley believe him though, and was possibly the only person to ever know of his ability. The only time she ever doubted him was when she first met him on the empty property behind her mother's trailer, but when he completely vanished in front of her she couldn't help but trust his explanation. It was rare for him to ever visit a place more than twice, but every week or so Finn would appear just as he promised the visit before. This was different, this time he didn't know her. He didn't know their history together. "I'm..sorry." She said shaking her head in defeat, "I'll leave you alone. I just…" She trailed off, not wanting to explain any further. She grabbed her things and began to leave their corner, but couldn't help herself from commenting when she looked down at his coffee mug. "You know coffee triggers you. You shouldn't be drinking it." She muttered, almost walking away before she felt a hand catch her arm and pull her back.


	2. Chapter 2

If it was any other person in the world, Marley would've pulled out of the hand's grip immediately. She wasn't one to let someone pull and toss her around, but Finn's hand grasping her elbow wasn't there to force her back to the table that he sat at, but to tell her that he wanted her to stay after all. "Wait," She heard him mumble, as if he was afraid to say it too loudly. Marley turned to face him, although she was confused, upset, and heartbroken, she couldn't walk away from him as easily as she was letting on. It took all of her might not to hug him right then and there, but somehow she was able to control herself while staring into the deep chocolate brown of his eyes. He quickly let go of her arm once it was clear that she wasn't going to leave, giving the chance to fold her arms across her chest with an embarrassed expression on her face. He looked at her with wonder, and bewilderment, gesturing his hand silently for her to sit back down across from him.

A part of her wanted to force herself to go leave the diner and forget that she ever saw him, but her head knew that someone would literally have to drag her kicking and screaming before she'd ever leave. Marley quietly slid back into her spot, slipping her bag off of her shoulder and onto the seat next to her. "What do you mean…trigger?" He asked her even more cautious as ever, his eyes narrowing as he analyzed her reaction and ready to hear her answer. She couldn't help but smile sadly at how Finn had his walls up, being careful not to reveal too much about himself even though Marley knew almost every single thing about his life.

She sighed a little bit, not sure how much he wanted her to explain. She folded her hands lightly on top of the table, furrowing her brows slightly as she thought about what to say. He cleared his throat in impatience as she sat there, making her blush slightly. "I mean, coffee makes you…" She stumbled a little bit over her words, trying to make them come out exactly as she wants. "Coffee makes you never be anywhere at the right time. If that makes any sense." She said as she dropped her gaze to the table top and shook her head. She was probably sounding crazy, but she was telling him the pure honest truth. Something about his eyes made lying for her nearly impossible, or maybe it was his sweet smirk that she only saw in her mind at the moment, since his face was too stern for her comfort. She watched his eyes widen as he processed the cryptic message she gave him, his thought process showing all over his face. She saw his shock turn to disbelief, which turned to anger, which turned to shock again.

She sat quietly as the sequence repeated a few times, every other part of him seeming to be frozen before he found his voice again. "Who told you that?" His voice was thick with stale anger, "Who have you told?" He said as he began firing questions at her like she was being interrogated. Marley lifted her hands slowly, palms facing him as a signal that she wasn't a threat. She could see his anxiety, and the astronauts could probably see it from space. He did have a right to be, she was the only one who knew his secret that he'd kill to keep other people from knowing. It wasn't like she told anybody anyways, she knew better than to do that. It was just their secret, the secret that Finn himself told her years and years ago.

She let out a sigh, "Look, I've never told a soul. The only person I've ever talked about it with was with you, years ago. You're the one who told me." She said in a barely audible whisper, her frustration taking over. "I don't know what to do right now, honestly. You told me to stay calm and act normal but I can't! I can't act normal when you don't…" She drifted off as her anger subsided, leaving her feeling confused more than anything else. She looked up to see his eyes drilling into hers, not with suspicion but with sympathy. It was the first sign of old Finn that she'd seen since she entered the diner. Seeing a rare glance of her best friend that she'd known for years wasn't enough for her stomach to stop flipping and her heart to stop aching. "Hey, look. I'm sorry for bothering you, but I should go and leave you be." She said before quickly grabbing her purse and walking away before he had a chance to stop her this time, giving him one last glance before exiting the building. Marley raised her sleeve to wipe away a tear that popped out of her eye, cursing herself for even as emotional as she was. She kept her eyes shut and her face toward the sidewalk, trying to get home as soon as she could.

It was already dark outside, the temperature dropped slightly since she walked into the diner. The pavements were much emptier, giving Marley room to breathe and to let a few more tears slip down her face. She asked herself why she was crying, it wasn't like Finn offended her, she was just upset that the man she knew for so long didn't recognize her face. She stuffed her hands in her pocket as she continued toward her apartment. Just a few more minutes and she could collapse on her bed and pray that she'd wake up and it'd all be a dream. Marley was about to wipe her face clean from tears again when a hand caught her elbow again. "Finn, I…" She said turning around, except it wasn't Finn. A hand clamped over Marley's mouth before she could make another sound, muffling her scream.


	3. Chapter 3

Adrenaline pumped through Marley's body as she felt herself being pulled backward by somebody behind her. Whoever it was was big, big enough to tower over her tiny frame like a giant and to drag her backwards fast enough that her heels were scraping the ground in front of her. It took a moment of shock and confusion before she started to kick and squirm, trying her best to fight her attacker off. He had his arms wrapped around her chest,too tight for her to even attempt any punches at him. Nothing she tried had any effect on him, in fact, it only made him let out a low chuckle that send a bolt of ice cold lightning up her spine.

Marley went into full on fight mode, flailing her limbs and biting down as hard as she could on the hand that covered her mouth and nose. She tasted a little bit of copper in her mouth before he finally pulled it away, giving her a chance to let out a hoarse scream for help. Her heart was beating at the pace of helicopter propeller blades, but the instincts of her body proved to be more effective than she thought. After delivering a hard kick to his knee, she felt herself in the air for a short moment before her body hit the a metal wall. Her body was stunned for a second, the world spinning around her for a few seconds making her feel like she was going to throw up. He bent down over her, cursing under his breath as he held a pocket knife to her throat.

Everything about her was a blur, and the feeling of nausea only worsened as she felt the buttons of her blouse start to pop off with the flick of his knife. She let out a groan, trying to form words together to try and convince him to stop, but it came out all jumbled and murmured. She could only pray that he wouldn't kill her, and wouldn't hurt her too badly as the seriousness of her situation sunk in. Her body felt bloated and as cold as ice, and she squeezed her eyes shut as movement to her arms returned, making her try to push the man away from her.

His weight felt like ten tons, but after what seemed like a lifetime, he was gone and the sound of a body hitting the wall filled the air. She looked up just in time to see two figures throwing punches at each other, one easily overpowering the other. Marley could feel herself spinning, even though she was still lying on the cold ground. Trying to prop herself up, she let out a wince at the horrible ringing sound in her ears. A few more sounds of punches and bodies being thrown against walls, and then she felt a pair of hands lightly grasping her shoulders, making Marley start to fight back again. "Don't! It's okay, it's me, Finn." She heard a voice say above her, that that he had to introduce himself. Marley recognized who it was as soon as the first word left his mouth. She let out a sigh of relief, trying to tell him thank you, but her words were still coming out in jumbled groans.

"Jesus," He cursed as she felt a warm fabric cover her chest. His jacket, she realized, he put his jacket over her front that was now somewhat exposed and freezing in the unusually chill air. She again tried to use her hands to prop herself up, ignoring the nearly unbearable ring, and with the help of Finn's arm under her elbow she shakily made it to her feet. If the world was spinning down on the ground, it was completely in a chaotic spiral now. "He got you good, are you okay?" He said he stood in front of her, lifting her chin to inspect her face for any injuries. He ignored her jumbles that were starting to slowly become clearer, wiping a little bit of dark red blood that was coming from a cut on her forehead by her hairline. "It looks like you have a concussion, you need to go to a hospital." He said, his voice contorted with a mix of anger and worry.

The girl shook her head, "S'okay, Finn. M'okay, I swear." she stammered out as she reached for a wall as a more helpful support. She felt his arm wrap around her back as he lifted her arm to go over his shoulder as he started to lead her out of the alley. She suddenly realized that the man attacked her drug her into a dark ally, where pushed her against a dumpster and cut off the buttons to her blouse. Finn must have followed her from the diner and saw her get pulled into the ally, and ran ahead to help her before it was too late.

He let out a strained chuckle, as if he was trying to contain the urge to go beat up whoever attacked Marley. "Like hell you are. You're going to a doctor, like it or not." He said as he lead her down the street toward the towns local hospital, which was thankfully only about 10 blocks away. The two talked on their way there, Finn trying to avoid the subject of what happened as much as possible. "Thank you," She said looking up at him, giving him a soft smile. The lights of the hospital were easily in view; the two of them were less than a block away now.

She heard him start to respond before she almost fell face first on the ground. Her arm quickly reached out and caught the base of the light pole, giving her time to look up before his clothing hit the ground in a pile. She let out a sigh, he was gone again for who knows how long. She clumsily gathered them and tossed them in a trashcan before continuing on her way to the hospital. Once she finally made it to the front doors, a nurse rushed out to keep her from falling all over the place. The lights inside felt as bright as the sun, but most of the experience passed by rather quickly as her mind was focused on Finn. She thought about how he told her once long ago that important events drew him to specific times, was this one of those events? She only prayed that he'd come back, for a longer time next time.


	4. Chapter 4

It wasn't until a few weeks later that Finn appeared again; this time in an even more unexpected way.

Marley shot up in her bed to the sound of a crash, seeming to come from the hallway outside of her room. Her head spun a little bit as her heart bumped blood through her system faster than a bullet, and her eyes took a moment to adjust to the scene around her. She saw the silvery moonlight leak through the cracks in the curtains, which was the only thing that allowed Marley to see anything else in her nearly pitch black room.

She gripped the sheets below her as she strained her ears to listen for any sign that she wasn't imagining things, which didn't help her anxiety when she heard another loud thud. Everything was still inside of her room, except for her heart that pounded louder than a hammer against steal. She cursed under her breath, slowly tossing her legs over the side and standing up off of her bed.

The floor slightly creaked below her, making her take in a quick breath of air before quickly moving onto her thick rug. She thought for a moment about putting on a pair of pajama bottoms to cover up her boy short underwear that was paired with a big tee shirt, but quickly decided against it as another sound echoed through her room. She gripped the metal bat that rested against her dresser, praying that she wouldn't have to use it for anything other than self defense. Her mother bought her the weapon as a form of security for her daughter, but this was the first time Marley even imagined of using it. It may have been because of her incident a couple weeks back, but this time the girl was certain on sneaking up on her intruder and taking him by surprise.

She pressed open her door with her sweaty palm, thankful that it was silent in the still night. A few more steps down the hall; the person who was here must be in the living room. She held the bat high, ready to hit anybody who would attack her. She let out a sigh of relief at the sight of the man trying to break the lock that she placed on her windows, "Finn." she murmured to herself cautiously. She waited for him to run away, or at least give her an awkward look as he processed whose house he appeared in. Her heart rate immediately slowed as he turned around, a look of comfort on his face as if he recognized her.

He did recognize her, Marley knew that for sure as he gave her a grin and spoke her name quietly back to her. Something in that moment clicked, something in the glimmer of his eyes told her that he was the one that knew her. She wanted to go toward him and lock him in an embrace, but she immediately deemed that inappropriate seeing that he was covering himself with one of her blankets. She was always used to seeing him covering himself when she was a little girl, but something in his body language was different this time; it was something that Marley couldn't quite put her finger on. "D-do you want some clothes?" She asked, not realizing how stupid she sounded for asking that. She wasn't a very good conversationalist; she also had a bad habit of saying the wrong things at the wrong times, which often times got her into awkward situations like the one a few weeks ago.

She smirked a little bit as he gave her a nod, leaving her unsure of whether he was smirking because he was glad to see her or if her awkwardness amused him. After she quickly grabbed a pair of her biggest sweats and a large t-shirt from her room, she returned to her living room to see him still standing in the same place. She held them out with a shrug of her shoulder, and mouthed her a thank you as she started to turn around, a blush starting to creep onto her face. She stood facing the opposite wall, waiting for him to clear his throat or tap her shoulder to signal that he had changed. Instead, she felt a pair of large, familiar arms wrap around her torso and spin her around. He held her at arm's length for a moment, analyzing her face carefully before pulling her close into a warm embrace.

It was silent as they lingered in each other's arms for a moment, Marley letting her arms wrap around his gently for a moment, but she couldn't resist breaking it as the moments lingered on. "When...when are you from?" She said awkwardly, trying to put the right words together. He chuckled a little bit, telling her that he knew 'enough'. That word brought even more weight off of her shoulders, and she couldn't help but giggle slightly as he pulled away, asking what time period he'd shown up in. "A few weeks after the diner incident," She said with a little smile, sitting down on the couch and gesturing for him to sit down beside her.

When he did she turned her body toward him, crossing her legs and letting one of her hands reach up to tear the hair tie that held her hair in a sloppy bun out of her hair. "About that, sorry for being a little bit of a jerk to you," He said leaning back, running a hand through his unusually long hair.

She shrugged her shoulders, "It's no big deal, you didn't know. I'm the one that didn't act normal like you said." Looking back now, Marley felt a little bit like an idiot for the way that she acted at the diner. She'd been thinking about it for a while now, and her mind always thought that maybe if she had acted with a little more grace that she might not have been trapped in that ally.

"Well," He said, patting her hand softly, as Marley's heart sped to an almost unnatural speed. "I'm going to make it up to you. Tomorrow? Breadstix?" He said, giving her his usual goofy smile that he used whenever he wanted her to do him a favor.

Marley usually wouldn't have gone out with a guy, she'd always been a timid girl like that, but she was way more interested in reconnecting with Finn rather than staying home for another night. She licked her lips slightly before replying, "Only if you promise that you'll stay here until you...leave." A wide smile spread across his face, and he gave her a little nod as he tried to mask his excitement. Although she wasn't completely sure that he would even be here until tomorrow night, she really hoped that he would be. The only thing that made her more nervous than her dinner with Finn, was the fact that he could disappear at any time for an even longer amount of time than before. "Deal." She said with a soft smile.


End file.
